A boy (Raghav), with his family, meets a girl (Mita)’s family. They like each other and they discuss marriage. The date is set ………. Preparations on its way and then comes the D-Day. Raghav and Mita get married in what we call a dream wedding. Friends, relatives and guests go back happy and satisfied and Mita starts her new journey at Raghav’s home. Months pass by and like every new couple they too get busy leading their lives until one day I hear a shocking news….. Raghav and his parents got arrested for torturing the bride u/s IPC 498A. I have known Raghav’s family for ages. So, the first reaction was that of disbelief. How could they do this!!!
IPC 498A states that…. Whoever, being the husband or the relative of the husband of a woman, subjects such woman to cruelty shall be punished with imprisonment for a term which may extend to three years and shall also be liable to fine. The offence is Cognizable, non-compoundable and non-bailable.
Though the term ‘Cognizable’ means the complaint made by the girl’s family needs to be registered and investigated but in reality arrests are done based on complaints and no investigation is done about the authenticity.
However, after spending some strenuous days of mental torture in the jail, Raghav and his parents are set free. Mita’s family has agreed for an out of court settlement wherein they have demanded an obnoxious sum of money as alimony. Raghav has agreed upon the alimony just to get rid of Mita and her blackmails and lead a peaceful life.
This story might sound familiar to many people. Some may have faced it directly and others may know someone who has been through this ordeal.
Women have been subject to torture for dowry for ages. They have been beaten, burned alive, murdered. Some of the groom’s family has been punished and many have managed to dupe the law. In order to safeguard the women from torture in their matrimonial homes, the IPC was amended and 498A was inserted in our legal system. But do the real victims ever seek justice!!! A study shows that if you pick up 10 men randomly from the street, at least 7 of them would have IPC 498 imposed on them.
A law which was made to protect the women has become an aid for them to blackmail and extort money from the groom’s family. There have been many instances where the guy had to commit suicide under pressure as he could not bear the harassment he had to face from the girl, her family and the corrupt legal system. The so called ‘abala nari’ gets an upper hand to harass her husband and his family in the name of torture and gets away with a nice amount of money.
Isn’t it high time proper amendments are made in the law so that the innocents don’t get harassed and the offenders are punished??
I invite my friends to put your inputs/opinions on this issue. Experts comments are also welcome as this has become a problem in every second household.
Tuesday, April 7, 2015
Thursday, March 26, 2015
Revisiting Rishyap
Today I am writing after a looong gap basically on the insistence of two very dear friends of mine.
Let me take you all to a trip to one of the most beautiful quaint little village situated in North Bengal in Kalimpong district named Rishyap. This was my second visit to the place since the first which was a one night two days stay left me wanting for more. This time we thought of spending 5 days there to drink in the beauty of the place to our utmost satisfaction.
It was an October evening when we reached Rishyap. We checked-in into a resort named Kanchanview and as the name suggests it had a beautiful garden in front with seating areas where you can sit and stare at the mighty Kanchenjungha. Though the Kanchenjungha was totally covered with clouds at that point in time, we were hit by the biting cold and no amount of rum was of much help. As darkness fell, the hills below lit up as if all the stars have come down to Earth. It was a sight which I must have seen a hundred times but it still mesmerizes me.
The next morning I was awakened by my fellow travelers at 4.30 am and I rushed out with my camera (ready on the tripod) to see what I had come here for …… the Kanchenjunga standing proud with a golden glow spreading its aura around. I started clicking pictures not wanting to let go off any moment of the constantly changing beauty of the mountains. The sunrise was another spectacular view which is beyond any description.
After having a sumptuous breakfast, we went about exploring the village and by the time it was lunch hour we were ravenous and hogged like pigs. That evening we decided to have a bonfire and bar-be-que. We were faced with a few hostilities from the resort owners when we asked for some extra wood that left us thinking about the change in their attitude within the last few years. The so called ‘pahari people’ were known to be a very friendly lot but this time we didn’t really get to see their amicable side. The next day we went trekking to Tifindhara …… a 3 km trek covering 2000 ft. The trek through dense forest with hill on one side and trench on the other seemed to dip into abyss. Huffing and puffing we reached the view point of Tifindhara which gives a 360 degree view of the mountain range. We, however, couldn’t see anything since it was covered with clouds but nonetheless spent a great time on the hilltop.
The consecutive days were spent visiting the Lava Monastery, Lolegaon canopy walk and another lovely village named Charkhole spread out on a hilltop. The drive through the coniferous forests and hilly roads were amazing. Every nook and corner was blessed by abundant beauty.
The last day of our stay was made memorable by the sight of the entire mountain range with about 6 important peaks (so the locals informed us) as if the bride decides to bid us farewell by lifting the veil from her face. We came back satisfied, happy, fulfilled and charged up to face the busy city life.
Let me take you all to a trip to one of the most beautiful quaint little village situated in North Bengal in Kalimpong district named Rishyap. This was my second visit to the place since the first which was a one night two days stay left me wanting for more. This time we thought of spending 5 days there to drink in the beauty of the place to our utmost satisfaction.
It was an October evening when we reached Rishyap. We checked-in into a resort named Kanchanview and as the name suggests it had a beautiful garden in front with seating areas where you can sit and stare at the mighty Kanchenjungha. Though the Kanchenjungha was totally covered with clouds at that point in time, we were hit by the biting cold and no amount of rum was of much help. As darkness fell, the hills below lit up as if all the stars have come down to Earth. It was a sight which I must have seen a hundred times but it still mesmerizes me.
The next morning I was awakened by my fellow travelers at 4.30 am and I rushed out with my camera (ready on the tripod) to see what I had come here for …… the Kanchenjunga standing proud with a golden glow spreading its aura around. I started clicking pictures not wanting to let go off any moment of the constantly changing beauty of the mountains. The sunrise was another spectacular view which is beyond any description.
After having a sumptuous breakfast, we went about exploring the village and by the time it was lunch hour we were ravenous and hogged like pigs. That evening we decided to have a bonfire and bar-be-que. We were faced with a few hostilities from the resort owners when we asked for some extra wood that left us thinking about the change in their attitude within the last few years. The so called ‘pahari people’ were known to be a very friendly lot but this time we didn’t really get to see their amicable side. The next day we went trekking to Tifindhara …… a 3 km trek covering 2000 ft. The trek through dense forest with hill on one side and trench on the other seemed to dip into abyss. Huffing and puffing we reached the view point of Tifindhara which gives a 360 degree view of the mountain range. We, however, couldn’t see anything since it was covered with clouds but nonetheless spent a great time on the hilltop.
The consecutive days were spent visiting the Lava Monastery, Lolegaon canopy walk and another lovely village named Charkhole spread out on a hilltop. The drive through the coniferous forests and hilly roads were amazing. Every nook and corner was blessed by abundant beauty.
The last day of our stay was made memorable by the sight of the entire mountain range with about 6 important peaks (so the locals informed us) as if the bride decides to bid us farewell by lifting the veil from her face. We came back satisfied, happy, fulfilled and charged up to face the busy city life.
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